707inZambia

Saturday, August 11, 2012

We are sitting in the airport awaiting our first plane trip - and it is fun to just sit and watch the team talking, laughing, playing games and still connecting. I have not been on a missions team that connected this well together... they all seem to genuinely enjoy one another - and there are no groups - just one team.

God has worked in some incredible ways on this trip. Our students have been able to share their testimonies with thousands of people, and hundreds have prayed to receive Christ. Our team has been challenged in their faith and dependance on God in each and every situation.

I was asked as we were sitting down for a meal yesterday - "what was your favorite part of the trip?" Well, I have two favorite parts. First for me was the baptisms. As a pastor, there is nothing more exciting for me than to see a student publicly profess their faith in Christ. I have had the opportunity to see almost every one of these students stand up in front of large groups of Zambians and declare that they are followers of God, but baptism is something different. To hear these students standing in a river in Africa declaring their love for Christ - there really is nothing like it. Two of the students who shared their testimonies gave their lives to Christ at 707 during the 2010-2011 school year - and NOW THEY ARE IN ZAMBIA sharing the name of Christ - it really is unreal.

My other favorite part was our visit to Matthew 25 ministries. I wish you all could me Ionge... your faith would be pushed like never before. I truly count her as one of my heros. She did not set out to start an orphanage - but as she read scripture, she could not get away from listening and following the commands of God. I can see a renewed interest that churches in America have put on Christ's commands to care for orphans... foster care and adoption are incredible options for families as they seek to follow Christ's commands. However, somehow the widows, prisoners, the sick... they get left out. This one woman in Zambia is investing her entire life into following the complete command of Christ. I want to learn to read the Bible like Ionge.

This is my fourth trip to Zambia, and if God allows, it will not be my last. Being away from my family is INCREDIBLY hard for 17 days... thank you for all who have lent a hand back there for Courtney. But each and every time I come - I am so encouraged in my faith. I count it an incredible honor to be used by God for something like this trip. These students have been incredible, the staff who have come have led fearlessly, and God has moved. Thank you all for your prayers - we cannot wait to share more stories with you upon our arrival at 4:00 on Sunday. We love you all!

Tuesday, August 7, 2012

It is after 10 o'clock here - and we leave for our debrief at 7 AM tomorrow... judging by the condition of many of the rooms... there are some who will not be going to bed tonight. What an incredible time of ministry we have had. Over the next few days we will share some final thoughts and give some pictures of the experiences we have had. Hope you all enjoy...

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Hello Zambia blog readers! This is a trip update as told by Daniel Czaplicki. Today was our last day of ministry, and I wanted to share my experience with you all. Before I left I asked many of you to pray for the times I would be witnessing to the Zambians, and I have to tell you, your prayers worked incredibly. After a few days of visiting schools we went to the University of Zambia to do door to door evangelism. I was extremely nervous and excited, so as we were walking up to the first dorm I just asked God to give me strength and to speak through me: “It is God who arms me with my strength, and makes my way perfect.” Psalms 18:32. Our campus crusade staff member, Victor, Spencer, and I spoke with about 10 rooms/groups of students and all but 2 prayed to receive Christ. I got the opportunity to take the lead in several of the conversations, and it was incredible how God spoke through me. I had absolutely no idea what I was going to say but as soon as I started speaking, the words just came to my head, as if God put them there. From that day on God blessed me with so many opportunities to share the gospel, and I was ready for each one. The next day when I spoke to a group of boys at the school we visited, and I shared my testimony with them. Just when I thought they weren’t listening, one asked, “This Jesus Christ, how can he become my personal Savior?” When I heard this I was ecstatic. I gathered as many people as I could around and explained what being a Christian meant, and prayed to accept Christ with them. Every day I had an opportunity like that, and God spoke through me to lead them to Christ. Even when I got the chance to share my testimony in front of an entire school, I just felt God speaking through me. Thank you so much for all your prayers, they have been such a blessing and have played a huge part in this trip.

P.S. Mom and Dad, if you are reading this please comment on the blog. I would like to hear from you. If not, comment and say why you aren’t reading the blog.

-Dan

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Hey all! It’s Clare. So we’ve been in Zambia for about a week and a half now and I’ve loved every minute! Even the multiple times our power or water didn’t work. Or one time our bathroom was flooded for days (best youth pastor award goes to Jack for cleaning it up). It’s been such a wonderful experience bonding with friends as well as spending time with Zambians. It’s such a blessing to have the opportunity to come to Africa and get to know these people. My favorite moments have been the simple cries. There are many children who frown when we first see them. However, a smile and wave from us seems to turn their frowns into joyful smiles. It’s such an incredible feeling to know that a simple smile can change someone’s day. These moments have helped me to realize why God put me on this team; to spread joy and love. I’ve loved playing with the kids and being a light to the people here. They encourage me with their genuine kindness and hospitality. Oh, how I wish America modeled life after the Zambians.

Although I’ve loved these past 10 days and look forward to the debrief, I can’t wait to come home and see my family and friends. Zambia has had a large impact on my life and I couldn’t be more thankful for the opportunity to have come here. See you soon!

Special hello to Shelbs Greg, Courtney Janigian, the Vogels, Lauren, and other friends who have read the blog. Miss you mommy, dad, Colin, Steve, and friends at home. Love you all!

-Clare

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Muli Bwanji from Katherine

As our last day of ministry comes to a close, I want to share what has impacted me the past two weeks. In short – the Zambian people. Never in my life have I experienced such a joyful, open and beautiful way of life. In their worship they overflow with praise for Jesus and in their prayers they shout with such a passion I am close to tears. From Day 1, they were open to hear. In the universities and the small villages in the bush individuals welcomed us into their lives open to hear our stories and excited to share theirs.

However, above all what has left an impression on me is the Zambian children. Today I watched as the street kids crawled under a barbed fence in order to get remotely close to our team as we shared at a village school. My heart ached as I witnessed a little girl yelp as she got her hair caught in one of the barbs and her friend rushed to untangle her. Throughout the days children latch onto your arms and pull you just hoping to get your attention. All these kids yearn for is the love that only our Lord Jesus Christ can provide. IN matthew 19:14, Jesus tells his disciples, “Let the children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such of these!!” I know the Lord smiles on these children and their capacity to learn and love. What they have given me is a love stronger than I have every experienced for the kids and hunger for Jesus just as these kids possess. They are ready to hear but who will go and tell them?

I thank God for opening my eyes to these children and I am excited to see how they continue to grow.

Thank you to those who supported me in this mission, and I can’t wait to share when I return!

Love,

Katherine Harvey

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Hello from Zambia! This is Liz with another exciting update for you back at home... so mom, you can stop refreshing the page. :)

Today was a new experience for many of us as we took a 90 minute drive out to “the bush”. The long trip was a wonderful extension of the realization that we got on the Sabbath yesterday. Our trusty bus, fondly named Glenda, got us there safely - although it is hard to explain where “there” is.

Huts scattered the dusty red earth, and chickens and cattle roamed free throughout the village. Many people in the area did not speak English, but it posed no problem for us with the amazing Crusade staff there to aid in translating. The setting was much different than our team was used to, but it is fun to see how comfortable we have gotten when God places us in crazy situations - and boy was today crazy!

I was able to take a lot of time on the bus to spend with the Lord...He knew it was exactly what I needed to prepare for the day. Jack told us to split into groups so that we could do door to door ministry. For a moment my heart stopped. I really have enjoyed doing door to door ministry both on this trip and last year’s trip, but it definitely puts me out of my comfort zone. Add on the fact that there are not even literal doors on the huts we are visiting, and the saying “we are not in Kansas anymore” takes on a whole new meaning. God has been teaching me on this trip that scary is good though, and having amazing faith in Him and His plan is what leads to truly living. As Jack and Kerry put it a few nights ago “when you live by faith you get to experience God, and that makes you beautiful”.

So with that mindset I began a short walk down a path to the nearest hut with Trevor, Kerry, and Rachel (who is a Campus Crusade staff member that I have really connected with on this trip). Greetings were exchanged, stools were set up, and God got right to work. Kerry began to speak with a woman and her sister while the children listened. They said they knew about God but shook their heads almost embarrassed when they admitted they did not know of Jesus Christ the son of God. Yet again, my heart skipped a beat, but this time out of excitement. Without even thinking about it, the Holy Spirit led my mind in prayer as He led Kerry’s powerful yet gentle words in explaining to these women who God’s son is and what he done for them. It baffled my mind to grasp the concept that these women had never heard of Jesus, and that God had planned this moment for them and he chose us to be the ones to explain to them that their debts have been paid by an all loving, all powerful Savior. It was by far the best news I have ever delivered, and oh how that news was received...with questions and excitement, giggles from the kids, and tears from us as the prayer of salvation was translated, repeated, and sown into the hearts of these women and children. Never have I felt a more spirit led moment and I thank God for designing every part of it.

Rachel, Kerry, and I went on to play and sing songs with the girls as Trevor played football with some of the boys. At one point Rachel captivated all of the children with a fun and interactive Bible story. My attention was stolen by two boys standing not too far away. As I observed them playing and talking I felt like I had seen them before. Finally a voice in my head made the connection and screamed “David and Joe!” These boys were twins to my two brothers down to the last mannerism. I’m so happy to know that these boys now have a Christian influence in their lives and can have the same opportunity as my brothers to grow into Godly young men. We ended our time with a traditional drum beat and all of us taking turns to, embarrassingly, attempt some traditional dance.

The second half of our day was spent at the football field where the boys played soccer and us girls played with the kids. The giant multi-colored parachute, bubbles, and soccer gear were all a big hit. Thank you so much to everyone who supplied our team with everything we were able to pass out. I only wish that you could experience the joy that these children have when they see our goodies. My favorite thing is having a huge group of kids jumping to try and catch a bubble... don’t even get me started on their smiles if you blow a bubble directly to them. It is almost the same look when you snap a picture of a young girl, let her see it, and then get to tell her how beautiful God made her. The glee from them after hearing they are beautiful is almost as great as the glee I feel when I realize God just used me to wrap his loving arms around one of his daughters to make her feel special. If there is one thing no one can deny from the work that is being done on this trip - it would be that Jesus truly does love all the little children of the world.

Please keep our team in our prayers as we travel to Livingstone and for our debrief time as we reflect on the wonderful things God has done on this trip.

Mom, Dad, David, Joe, and Lucy I miss you so so much. Your letters and blog posts warm my heart and remind me that you are much closer than I think. Boys, you better let me give you both a big kiss when I get home. Mom, I can’t wait to talk for hours, and dad, I can’t wait to get a big hug from you. Give Lucy a big hug from me and please have some watermelon ready for me to gobble up once I get home. Love you lots XOXO.

Monday, August 6, 2012

On a trip like Zambia - I don't really think in terms of staff and students. Nick Spitler is my point guy as a returning staff member when there is a leadership - but for the most part - we operate as a team of 30 rather than staff/student. Each of us carries the load of the ministry equally each day. So today, here is an update from three of our staff members as to what they have seen. We have more posts that are currently being written by some students... but it is almost midnight here... so I am going to bed :)-Jack-------

Hi from Zambia!

It’s hard to believe our trip is already coming to an end - It has been such a blessing to serve with this amazing team in this amazing country. One of the first things Pastor Ron told us when we arrived is that Zambians love to love each other, and this has been on constant display our entire trip. They’re so welcoming to us, but also generous to one another. We were in a village today and Pastor Teddy explained that when they have an issue, everyone gets involved. People came from 20 kilometers away to help with a well in the village. It’s just the way they do life, they don’t give to receive. It’s so refreshing!

I’m so proud of our students. It’s been a joy to hear their testimonies and watch them seek out the people we encounter. It’s so encouraging to see them grow in their faith. On a side note - if you’re reading this and you have a son/daughter that isn’t involved at 707, GET THEM THERE! They’ll have a blast and be led to do life the right way. It’s amazing to see how high schoolers inspire me!

Thanks for your prayers and support, and know that this whole team loves and misses OPC. A quick shout out to Mom, Dad, Chaz, Johanna, and Charlie, Love you guys so much!

-Drew

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For those of you that have been fervently praying for my back, I thank you so much! I have been reading the book Captivating, and the author Stasi Eldridge wrote about a time she suffered with severe vertigo and she realized it as a spiritual attack. So she prayed in the name of Jesus Christ to have the illness leave her and it did. I decided to pray in the name of Jesus for my back pain I have been suffering with for 4 months to leave me as I realized it as a spiritual attack. As i prayed, I literally felt my back changing, and I haven’t had back pain since Friday! I have been suffering for 4 months and in an instant, my pain was gone. I was in the van with other staff and I immediately started bawling as all the staff hugged me and rejoiced with me. I just wanted the prayer warriors to be encouraged and that their prayers have been answered! My prayer life has been forever changed. So thank you so much for praying! The plane ride home will be much more tolerable without pain.

Love you all!

Alli Pew

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Hey families and friends! This is Jay, I’m one of the newer staff members to 707. It has been an absolute blessing to not only be a part of 707, but a part of this team here in Zambia.

Today has to be the high point of the ministry work we have done so far. I’m not sure exactly where we were as we usually just all pile into Glenda and Victor Pilots us to wherever we are destined for. We drove close to 2 hours out to a village in the bush. Little did I know what God had in store for us.

Before I write too much more. I want to note, writing is not my forte so bear with my random thoughts.

We arrived at a home in the village and we were all greeted by small children and the family members that lived there. As typical of the Zambian people, they were very eager to shake hands and talk with us. Many of us wandered around a bit as we were pretty intrigued to be in the middle of no where at a village with people that had no running water, electricity, cooked in an outside “kitchen”, had chickens running everywhere, and just lived life in the most simple form. They had tons of cotton that had been harvested, 20 bags of corn in another area that had been harvested and removed from the cob. All to be sold for family income. Roosters crowing, hens with chicks, a “structure” made for bathing. For all of us that come from south east Michigan, this was quite a change of scenery, as you might imagine. We broke up into 10 groups of 3 each with 1 staff member from Campus Crusade to visit the families in the village. David, Nathan, and I were paired up with Pastor Billy. Our first visit we met with Alfred and Patrick. Alfred was the younger brother to the chief, and Patrick was his Nephew. After Pastor Billy had introduced us all. We started by each of us giving our testimonies. Then read scripture outlining God creating man, how we are saved through Jesus Christ, that we are to answer his knocking, that we have eternal life through Him, to pray, fellowship, and share the gospel with everyone. The 3 of us took turns reading passages to them. It was really amazing as we just kind of all worked together and it flowed. Talk about the Holy Spirit at work!

Patrick intently wrote down each verse we read so he could look them up later. Pastor Billy asked if they had accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior, to which they both said, “no.” But that they wanted to. We then did the sinner’s prayer as both Alfred and Patrick accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior. Through Pastor Billy, I asked if they had a Bible, and they didn’t. We gave them 2 Bibles and prayed with them. How awesome!! We then ventured to another home, where we met the grandmother and daughter. I couldn’t pronounce her name let alone try and write it. But I do remember she was incredibly sweet. After we introduced ourselves, gave our testimonies, read more scripture, they too, accepted Christ as their Savior. In total, we had 5 people saved in the short time we were out. I gave the grandmother the shirt I was wearing, and the picture of my family I have been carrying since our arrival in Zambia. She was so excited but I think I was more excited as I know I will get to see her again. She gave me a big hug and we said our goodbyes. We spent the rest of the day with the village playing soccer, games, jump rope, bubbles, and just sitting under the trees. Hershey had the cutest little boy fall asleep in his arms. There was talk of how we could take him home!

I could write for hours trying to note every memory I have of this day and still not be able to capture all of the work God has done on this day. I will never forget those beautiful Zambian people that were saved today. And I am quite sure they will not forget the day of their rebirth into eternal life with the Americans as their witnesses.

As we wind down this trip and prepare to come home, I have to thank God for putting me here, and my family for being so supportive, and willing to make the sacrifice of me being gone from them. I love you, Amy, Abby, and my “Bubba!” See you soon! God Bless!

Jay

Romans 10:14-15

“How, then, can the call of the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”

Sunday, August 5, 2012

Sorry it has taken a while to get a new post up. Obviously being in Zambia - you can only prepare for so much. Every other night around 6:00 we lose power and have no power or no water for the night... lot's of fun :) It gets dark here right around 6:15 - so we end up wandering around a pitch dark hotel - but this team is amazing and has so much fun together. Our internet typically involves walking down the street to a small "cafe" situated between two noisy bars. Sketchy at best.

Parents and friends, we have a lot of fun reading aloud your comments on the blog - so please continue to share and encourage as you feel led - your comments mean more to the team than you know. And keep those prayers coming as well!!!

Here we go...---------

Hey all, it’s Lauren,

I am so excited to write this blog to share my experience of today’s events and amazing ministry moments. Today, we went to the University of Zambia to do door to door evangelism in their dorm rooms. Last night, when Jack gave us the schedule run down, I had many fears about speaking with the students. However, I knew that God would provide me with the words to speak and would use me as His hand to share His name with His precious children.

When we loaded off of Glenda (our bus) at the university, we all divided into teams about 3 students with a Campus Crusade leader. In my group, Meghan Shannon, Sarah Hall and I took off with 2 Crusade members. We visited many dorm rooms and had an amazing time sharing God’s Word.

We encountered many believers, and at times, I found my job of sharing very easy. I fully believer that this was God giving me the words to speak to these students. Whether believers, atheists, or agnostics, God supplied me with the words and confidence to share His word.

After this amazing morning of sharing, we loaded Glenda back up and headed off to another college that focused on Agriculture. There, we were supposed to hold a soccer game against the students and share Christ with the spectators. Unfortunately, the students had an unplanned exam, so our game was delayed for about 2 hours. However, there were many young boys playing soccer on the field, so we played with them for a long time. During that time, Jay climbed 30 feet up in a large Zambian tree - and we were all worried he was about to fall. To make matters worse, some of the team members (Hershey) began to thrown little rocks and hacky sacks at him. No worries - he was ok and returned to the ground after about 10 minutes of slow inching - it was hilarious.

The game finally began, and we had fun watching the American boys get their butts kicked by the more skilled Zambian players.

Today was an amazing day, and one of my favorites of this trip! This trip has already affected me in amazing ways and God has been doing amazing works through all of us. And to my family, yes I am getting enough sleep and have become very close with all the team members! I love you all and can’t wait to see you!

God Bless,

Lauren Syverson

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Hello friends,

When people tell you that going to Zambia will change your life, you can never quite prepare yourself for what that might be. For me, God has totally changed my heart in so many ways already.

Here in Zambia, everyone is overflowing with joy all of the time. It is crazy to see how little these children have at the schools we are helping at. They walk around in old, dirty, ratty clothes but the laugh like this is the best day they have ever had. They have so little, yet so much.

God really convicted my heart and said “Megan, you need for so little, but want for so much”. See, I’ve always struggled with what I personally can give to the kingdom of Christ. I thought just because I did not have the newest, nicest phone, or the biggest house that I am empty handed when it comes to giving.

However, God knew we had bigger better plans for what I thought to be so little. Proverbs 31:20 says “She opens her arms to the poor, she extends her hands to the needy” I made a decision here in Zambia to now just read and study God’s Word, but to actually do what he asks and give to the needy. God used the funds I had, and thought to be so little, and pooled them with others to give enough for food for 3 months to an orphanage. Jesus provides for his children, just like he promised, and he always will!

Saturday we had another power outage - no lights to see or water to flush a toilet with. (Our third night like this) We met as a group to worship and pray by moonlight. The song lyrics talked about how God is enough and provides for all of our needs. There was a break in the song where Tim just played guitar, and we all just sat in awe of God’s creation of the stars in the sky and the cool Zambian night air. Just then, the power cam back on and the lights on the pathway lit up as we continued to worship - it was an amazing night.

God is teaching me that He is always here for us and it is okay to give until you really have nothing left, because when you truly have nothing, you have 100% God. I just want to thank you all for your continued prayers for our team. I know I can feel God moving here each and every moment!

Lot’s of love from Lusaka, Zambia,

Megan Allred

P.S. Mom, Dad, and Emily, I love you and miss you sooo much. Give Oliver a treat for me!

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Hey everyone, it’s Kelsey!

On Saturday, we spent the day at Faith in Action boarding and day school. Our visit started out great with a giant welcome from all the children and the staff. They opened with a prayer which thanked the Lord for the work we were going to do in that place. They sung, and in return our team sang a few of our own songs with Tim. On the spot, Dan and Christina were chosen to present their testimonies. They both did SO amazing at using their life to reinforce the importance of inviting Christ into your life and the promise it provides which is eternal life in Glory with God.

We continued on in small groups so that we could get to know the kids on a more personal level. My group of about 10 kids consisted of only one boy who was 13 years old. He happened to be the only one who could fully understand what I was saying. His name was Inson, and he told me about his past trials and how he used to constantly get sick. His family could not afford to get him medical care, so he finally turned to faith as a reliance for his life. As much as he believed in God, he still did not have a relationship with Christ. So I pulled him aside and prayed out loud as he accepted Christ as his Lord and Savior. The moment that Christ entered into his life, he glowed and smiled a huge smile. The moment was not only a change to his life, but a strong moment in my own life as well. Throughout the rest of the time, everyone hung out, played games, and sang songs. But Inson never left my side.

It was a hard day for everyone to say good bye because such strong bonds were made. It is such and incredible feeling knowing that you contributed to a child’s life being committed to Christ and that you will see them again in heaven.

I want to share another story of how God worked - let me back up a few days to the evangelism at the university. It has always been a personal struggle of mine to both pray out loud and share my testimony. Going to a university to go door to door, I had to really rely on God to give me the words to share with these students who were older than me. It took a few rooms of me not saying a word in my group for me to finally gather up the courage to use my testimony. After sharing my testimony, I was able to help college student understand how accepting Christ changes your life. After more discussion and questions she prayed to accept Jesus. I have never felt like I did at that moment. It gave me the confidence that I can have a bigger influence than I could ever imagine. And since then, all of my friends on the team have been encouraging me to pray out loud and to be bold in my faith.

As a team, we have all been praying for God to reveal his purpose for each of us being on this trip. Great things have already happened within all of us in such unique ways with more to come. The bonds that have grown between us are unexplainable, and we are all here for each other in every way. I can’t wait to see what God has in store for me tomorrow.

Shout out to Kristin Schubring for all of her letters - I love you so much and it is crazy how perfect they have been for me each day - I miss you girl! And to my family - I love you very much, I can’t wait to get home to tell you all my stories and to continue to carry out what has been done in my life here.

Thursday, August 2, 2012

I had heard so much about her and my anticipation heightened on the drive to her home. When we arrived, there were two signs that graced the outside wall. One said MATTHEW 25 MINISTRIES and the other OUR MISSION IS TO FEED THE HUNGRY, CLOTHE THE NAKED AND GIVE SHELTER TO THE HOMELESS.

As we entered the outer courtyard of the small home, we were greeted by toddlers, 13-18 year olds, and to her credit, a young male college student. And then, my eyes came upon her, the most beautiful woman I had ever seen. She was wearing a long dress of pinks and purples and her hair was pulled back off her face. She had no features that were striking or attire that was dazzling, but I could not take my eyes off of her.

She told us the testimony of how God chose her to open her home to an orphan boy thru the book of Matthew, Chapter 25. It was an incredible story. She introduced each child to us and those whom were old enough to speak said their name and age. Trust me, it was impressive.

While many of the students sat and talked to and played with the children, the staff was given a tour of her tiny immaculate home. By the time I reached the back room where she was, there we stood alone - face to face. I threw my arms around her beautiful neck and all I could say was “THANK YOU” over and over again. As I wept on her shoulder, she held me and whispered “Thank You” back. The Holy Spirit spoke entire paragraphs between us tho we uttered not a word.

At last I was able to say “Thank you for being the hands and feet of Jesus for these precious boys and girls. They will call you blessed and do much for Christ’s kingdom because of you”. She replied “To God be all the glory, he has done great things for me!”

As we left, we gave toys, coloring books and games to the children that you, our OPC family provided for us. As a team of 30 people, we were able to pool our fund and give her enough money to supply food for her orphaned family for 3 months! She live on total faith for every need as she has no outside funding for her home. Unbelievable!

This is the short story of Inonge Nawa. Before we left, I asked her was Inonge meant. You guessed it...beautiful woman.